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las-vegas-680953_1920-300x200At about 11:15 p.m. on July 27, 2018, Anthony Garcia, age 28, and his passenger, Karisma Avila, age 19, were killed in a rollover car crash near Primm, Nevada. Garcia had been driving recklessly, and neither he nor Avila was wearing seatbelts. They were both ejected from the car during the crash and died from blunt-force injuries.

At the scene, police found a duffel bag containing $26,000 in cash as well as two jars filled with 64 pounds of THC cannabinoid oil. Police seized the cash using a procedure known as civil asset forfeiture, which allows law enforcement to take possession of an individual’s assets—such as cash, a vehicle, or a house—if they are suspected of being involved in a crime. In most states, criminal charges do not have to be filed for property to be seized.
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people-2583493_1920-300x200The Connecticut Department of Labor has issued two dozen “Stop Work” orders to nail salons in the southwestern area of the state. After an investigation involving 39 nail salons, the department’s Division of Wage and Workplace Standards says the 24 affected businesses were in violation of labor laws.

Labor Commissioner Kurt Westby explained his department is now working with the salons, which are mostly in Fairfield County, to bring them into compliance with the law. The violations include misclassifying employees as independent contractors and failing to carry workers’ compensation coverage. Each salon could be fined up to $300 per employee for every day the business was not in compliance.
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agriculture-architecture-building-449015-300x195Roman Catholic priest Jean-Claude Jean-Philippe of Homestead, Florida was arrested Friday after police said he drugged and sexually assaulted a parishioner.

Jean-Phillipe, 64, is charged with sexual battery on a victim who was physically incapacitated. He was held at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center and was released on $10,000 bond on Saturday. The press did not name an attorney for him.

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barbed-wire-black-and-white-black-and-white-690800-300x225State corrections officer Miya Bell of Homestead was arrested last weekend for allegedly driving under the influence while her children were inside her vehicle and resisting arrest.

Bell, 27, is charged with DUI, battery on a law enforcement officer, child abuse, and resisting an officer with and without violence. She is being held on $25,000 bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The press did not name an attorney for her.

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alabama-1611179_1920-300x287After the Supreme Court ruled last month that the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment applied to states—essentially outlawing excessive police seizures—lawmakers in Alabama are moving forward with reforms of civil asset forfeiture in the state.

Civil asset forfeiture is the legal process where police can seize an individual’s property, cash, or any other assets if they are suspected of being used in a crime. In Alabama there are no requirements for law enforcement to report seizures, so the scale of civil asset forfeitures in the state is hard to assess. Additionally, in order to take an individual’s assets, law enforcement only needs to demonstrate the property’s involvement in a crime to the court’s “reasonable satisfaction.” This is a far lower bar than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” that is required in criminal cases.
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